Be Ours Forever (part 1)

A soggy tissue sailed through the air and landed on top of its brethren in the trash bin. The thing looked like a snowstorm hit one corner of the bedroom. Balls of white fluff lay on the floor around the bin when a sneeze or cough screwed up her aim.

“I hate this,” Brenda groaned and reached for yet another tissue. “I look like a train wreck and a terrorist plot got together and had a baby.”

A choking noise came from the bathroom. Nico stepped into the doorway, a hand swiping at the dark stain on the front of his blue dress shirt. Shaggy blonde hair hid his eyes from her. His mouth was drawn in its usual soft smile, but she knew he’d been laughing. The water soaked into his shirt was proof enough. Nico was always careful about his clothes, to the point where she’d confronted him about his sexuality right before their wedding. Boy, that had been an embarrassing conversation.

“You look fine, darling.” His subtly accented voice wavered.

“No I don’t. My nose is so red Rudolph got a hard-on.” On cue her nose began to run again.

Nico turned quickly and headed into the closet. Brenda glared at his wide shoulders while she blew her nose. Even though she couldn’t hear it, she knew he was laughing again. His upper body trembled with restrained laughter while he stripped off the wet shirt and laid it on the pile of dry cleaning that needed to be taken in. If she was ever well enough to do it.

“I’m going to die,” Brenda announced.

“Don’t be ridiculous. It is simply a cold. You will feel better in a few days.” Nico pulled on a fresh shirt, this one a pale lavender that made his permanently tanned skin glow. She loved that shirt. Her husband looked damn near edible in it.

Shaking her head, Brenda snapped her attention off her flickering, nearly deceased libido. “You said that last week. I feel worse, not better. And now I’m missing not only our date night, but the chance to meet one of your friends.”

Regret flashed across Nico’s face before he could smooth it out to his normal pleasant expression. Throughout their relationship she’d learned that it was a mask, a false front to show the world. Seeing it in place now made her worry. How upset was he that she’d fallen ill?

“Rich will understand your absence, my love. Though he was looking forward to meeting the woman that managed to tame me.”

Brenda gave a sigh as she watched him button up the shirt, all that wonderfully toned muscle disappearing from view. Clothes were so annoying when your husband looked that damn good. And he would always look that good. It was a perk of being a vampire.

“I’m sorry, Nico.” She stopped to cough. Her abused lungs protested. “Usually I’d be better by now. But I just can’t kick this thing.”

“Would you allow me to do something?” There was a strange tone to the question.

Frowning, Brenda forced herself to sit up against the pillows mounded against the headboard. Her eyes swept over Nico’s face, finding only that frustratingly calm mask he used when discussing something he found difficult. Instead she looked for his other tell-signs. His fingers worried at the cuff of his shirt, smoothing a wrinkle that wasn’t there, straightening the cufflink.

“What do you want to do?” Fear fluttered in her stomach.

“Let me taste you.” He stayed in the closet doorway, giving her space to think.

Brenda frowned. Then a thought dawned on her. “You haven’t fed since I got sick, huh?”

“The bagged blood downstairs has been sufficient.”

“But its not warm and not from me,” she added.

Nico’s mask slipped, giving her a glimpse of an almost sheepish look. “That is not why I am asking, though the thought of being at your vein has haunted me for days now.”

He walked across the room slowly. The restraint he used forced his usually smooth movements into uncoordinated jerks. Nico perched on the foot of the bed, still giving her space to think and run away, she added. Guilt slapped the thought down. He’d never done anything to hurt her. There were times, though, when his vampire nature took control and she thought that would be the moment he forgot his vow to her.

So long as I walk this earth I will ne’er harm a hair on your head, Brenda.

The words chased away some of the worry echoing through her mind. A quick shake sent the fluffy-headed side effects from the medicine tumbling away long enough for her to think.

“Explain it to me, honey. There is still a lot about you I don’t understand yet.” Brenda scooted over, making a space for him to sit near her.

Nico looked relieved as he repositioned himself at her side. Their relationship was plagued by her simply not understanding what he was or the limits of his power. She knew he could do some rather impressive things, half of which came in very handy in the bedroom.

“Vampires can taste disease in mortal blood. It is a safety measure to prevent us from taking too much from those that need their blood more than we do.” A hand rubbed across his thigh before reaching over to find hers.

“What kind of diseases can you detect?” Her fingers wrapped around his large hand, holding tight.

“Almost all of them. It was our kind to first discover and understand the damage cancer wreaked on a mortal’s body.”

“You don’t think—“

“No,” he injected quickly. “No, I do not think it is cancer, but your illness should have left you by now. I feel helpless, love. Let me have a small taste to see what is wrong.”

Brenda brought up her left arm and offered the wrist to him. Normally when he fed it was at her throat, but she felt so awful the idea of him latching on to that sensitive skin made her want to cry. Feeding was a sensual feast for both of them. This would be cold, procedural. About as thrilling as a pap smear from a man old enough to be her grandfather.

She held her breath and waited. The bite itself was painful. Without endorphins racing through her bloodstream from foreplay, it was going to hurt even more. Brenda looked away, wishing Nico would hurry up and get it over with. The blankets lying over her legs were begging to be pulled up higher so she could burrow under them and go to sleep.

Fingertips swept up her arm. Brenda jumped. “You need to relax.” Nico’s voice dropped down, becoming a sensual purr.

Her body lit up like a neglected Christmas tree. His touch was light, but that tone in his voice sent her hormones reeling despite the creeping crud keeping her bedridden. Brenda took a breath and nodded. She focused on his fingers, the delicious licks of pleasure that swept through her as he brushed the inside of her elbow.

“Okay,” she whispered, afraid to break the spell his fingers wove.

“That’s a good girl.”

Full lips peeled back, giving Brenda a glimpse of his elongated canine teeth before they pierced the flesh at her wrist. The muscles in her arm tensed at the invasion. The natural instinct to rip her arm free forced her to lean away despite the painful tug where his fangs were buried deep in her.

Nico’s thumb traced small circles on her forearm, a silent plea to calm down again. She latched onto it, fell into the rhythmic movement. His fangs pulled out, allowing her blood to flow freely into his mouth. Brenda hardly noticed the pain of their retraction.

A trail of blood dribbled down her arm. Nico’s mouth followed, his tongue swiping up the red trail. He groaned. Color returned to his face even though he had only taken a little. The bagged blood wasn’t cutting it any more. They both knew it. Until the vampires came up with a better way to store donated blood, they would be forced to feed as they always have— fresh from the source.

With another swipe of his tongue, Nico cleaned the two neat puncture wounds. The antiseptic in his saliva would keep them from becoming infected as they healed. He snatched a tissue from the box and held it over the bite marks to stop the bleeding. Silence rang in the air. Brenda was beside herself with worry while waiting for him to tell her if he knew what was wrong.

“Well?” she asked, breaking the silence.

Heaving a sigh, Nico leaned back against the pillows. Dark blonde brows drew down over his eyes, which were still locked on her wrist. His thumb continued to stroke the soft flesh just above his bite mark. Brenda wasn’t sure which of them he was trying to sooth given the troubled look on his face.

“Just say it, baby.” The wait was going to kill her.

If the random coughing fits didn’t first.

Nico waited for the worst of the coughing to finish before handing her the glass of water from the nightstand. She took a sip and wanted to curse as she coughed it back up before she could finish swallowing. Water splashed over the blankets covering her lap. Whatever was wrong with her was getting worse.

With a wad of tissues, Nico swiped at the water soaking into the blankets. His gaze finally met hers and he winced. “Your body isn’t fighting the virus. It is as though your white blood cells have given up and gone on vacation.”

Brenda’s heart dropped to her stomach. She’d known for a while that her immune system could become compromised. The doctors said there was a fifty-fifty chance of immunodeficiency passing down from her parents. Fate’s coin flip landed her in the crap side of things and her white blood cells took a trip to Disneyland.

“You don’t look surprised, love.” Nico’s voice became as controlled as his facial expressions.

“Because I’m not.” When he didn’t reply she continued. “It runs in the family. I… I’d hoped that it would skip over me.”

“But it didn’t. You should have told me, Brenda. I’ve progressed your illness by taking blood so often. If I knew I could have—“

“You would have fed on other women.” She shook her head. “I am an open-minded woman, but to sit here every night knowing you are out in the city feeding on someone else,” her breath caught. The image in her head was so vivid. “No, I couldn’t deal with it.”

A hand slipped into hers, Nico’s grip trembled. He was hanging on by a thread. God did she know that feeling all too well. Since the sniffles and cough first started she was afraid her world as she knew it was coming to an end. Sometimes Brenda wished her gut feelings were nothing more than gas.

“The bagged blood would have been sufficient.” The words sounded forced.

“Don’t lie to soothe me, Nico. We won’t have time for it.”

It was harsh, but it was the truth. A mere cold had her bed ridden. Once she recovered from this there would be something else, something nastier waiting to take advantage of her weakened system. Even with a doctor’s intervention she’d be living on borrowed time.

“We could,” he whispered as he brought her hand up to brush a kiss over the knuckles.

Brenda frowned at him. The hitch in his voice when he spoke made her wary. Worse, it made that shard of fear about his species rear its head and jab at her. Would he kill her, put her out of her misery before her illness progressed?

“What are you suggesting, honey?”

“Let us turn you.” Nico looked at her. Hope shimmered in his eyes.

“Us? I don’t understand.”

“Your body has suffered greatly in just the few weeks since your immune system bottomed out. I will not be able to provide enough blood to complete your transformation.” His thumb went to work again, smoothing over the pulse at her wrist. “Without someone to aid us, you will be trapped in between our species. Those not turned properly are ravenous things, not much more than the base instinct to feed and kill.”

“I don’t want to kill.” Horror closed down Brenda’s throat, made it impossible to catch a breath. Another coughing fit claimed her. The muscles in her chest cramped painfully.

With the patience of a saint, Nico held her until the last of the coughing died down. She felt like someone had parked a tank on her chest. Over her wheezing breaths, Brenda heard him whispering soothing things in a language she couldn’t identify. That didn’t matter; the language barrier didn’t hamper their calming effect.

Brenda allowed him to shift her back against the pillows. Sitting straight up made her muscles ache. Laying down triggered more coughing fits. The gentle recline he’d rigged with the pillows was the best they could manage, though really uncomfortable to sleep on. She’d give anything for a moment of feeling like her old self again.

And that was exactly what Nico was offering.

“Better, love?” He watched her, his eyes measuring the shallow rise and fall of her chest. Thanks to his vampire nature he could also hear the beat of her heart without a stethoscope. She was a bug under a rather sexy magnifying glass.

“You said you’d need help,” she said in hopes of drawing her mind back from the brink. “Who would help us?”

“Ah, that would be me.”

Filling the doorway was a man with looks straight out of an x-rated movie. Rich gave them a smile that made his goatee lopsided. He was a bundle of nervous energy. A hand shot through golden brown hair that went well past his shoulders. Brenda knew he was the newest vampire in the area, barely eighty-five years old compared to Nico’s two hundred and ten years walking the earth.

The differences between them were evident right away. Rich had yet to perfect the blank, calm mask Nico wore often. His emotions were laid out right there for her to see. And he was scared. Concern etched itself into fine lines around his brown eyes. He watched her as though she would shatter into a thousand pieces.

Rich gave a short bow, acknowledging Nico as his elder before he entered the room. “I heard you from downstairs and thought my presence would help her decision.”

“You’ve been here this whole time?” Brenda shot Nico a look. How long had he been planning to turn her?

“He arrived early for our evening out, love. I meant to tell you, but your condition…” Nico shrugged, as though that would explain everything.

Suddenly the air in the room was hard to take in. Brenda struggled to sit up straighter. The realization that she was lying in bed with not just one, but two men giving her expectant looks made her nervous. To them the idea of turning probably seemed as mundane as what underwear to wear. Given the fact that her life had a gigantic time stamp on it, it should be easy. Right?

“I’m supposed to believe that you just happened to have a spare vampire sitting around for when you finally asked to turn me?” Brenda stroked the thin vein of anger wrapping through her. Anger was better than fear at that moment.

“Darling I—“

“Allow me, Nico. I am the intruder here.” Rich drew a hand through his hair again. It’s a good thing he’s a vampire or he would be completely devoid of hair after any stressful situation.

Brenda crosses her arms under her breasts. “Someone say something before I die.”

That grabbed both of their attention. Rich sat down on the far corner of the bed, his slim frame barely made the mattress move. Chocolate brown eyes took her in. Brenda knew without a doubt that he wasn’t missing any details. Knew just how close to death she was, even without tasting her blood. Nico tasted her to determine what was wrong, but they’d both already known her health was on a downhill slide.

Long fingers smoothed over the embroidery on the quilt covering the bed. Rich’s movements were slow, deliberate, just like Nico’s had been when he took her blood. Memory of the sensation put a cool blanket over the embers of anger. Brenda tried to stay pissed off. It was nice to hide behind it, but as she watched Rich fidget with the quilt she couldn’t keep it up.

Tears stung the back of her eyes. She didn’t want to die.

“Brenda, this was not a calculated attempt to trick you into our lifestyle. Your husband did ask me to visit with both of you. He even tried to cancel when it became apparent you were too ill to receive guests. But he worries, if I can sense it then others will as well.” Rich’s voice was low, calm.

Beside her, the man she loved shifted as though he were uncomfortable with the other vampire’s words.

“Why should it matter if other vampires know I am dying?” She couldn’t get past the need to weep for herself, which was completely useless and frustrating.

Nico captured her hand and drew it up to his lips. “We are more civilized now than our kind has ever been, however there are some that thrive on exploiting weaknesses in others.”

“But I—“

“They would use you to weaken Nico’s position in the community,” Rich said, his tone sharper than it had been before. “If your condition is found out, they will kidnap you and kill you. Or worse.”

Fear stuck in her throat. Brenda tried to swallow past it, only to fall into another violent coughing fit. She was drowning in air. Drowning in fear that something she was unable to control would put her husband at risk. Vampires were dangerous, he’d warned her before their marriage. The elders from the area had all been over. Their tales of past horrors became nightmares she relived over and over. But when she looked at Nico, she couldn’t see a monster. Not with his kind eyes and that secret smile he gave her when she amused him.

Both vampires came to her aid. Nico stayed where he was on her left. Rich knelt to her right, his slender fingers smoothing over her shoulder. They whispered soothing words, encouraged her to try and breathe normally. If not for the fact that it felt as though a giant had her lungs pinched between his fingers, Brenda would have laughed at them. Two immortal men hovering and cooing over a fragile woman, it was something out of a fantasy novel.

The coughs slowed, allowing Brenda to take a full breath. God, was that wheezing sound the best breath she could manage? She tried again with the same result. Next to her the men stilled. If not for the reassuring weight of their hands on her back and shoulder she could have sworn both had left the room.

“What is it?” Her voice was ragged.

Nico ran a palm over her arm and gently turned her towards him. “There is fluid in your lungs. We can hear it.”

That would explain the drowning sensation, Brenda thought.

“Either we do this now or we take you to a hospital, Brenda,” Rich added.

Sadness flowed through Nico’s eyes. He didn’t make a move to censor the emotion, allowing her to know full well what his feelings were. Brenda knew if she chose the hospital and eventual death from her compromised immune system that he would honor her decision.

But could she live with it? There would come a time when the pain was too great and she’d beg him to turn her. Brenda knew it as sure as she knew her own name. By the time she got there, though, there wouldn’t be a way to repair the damage to her body. Vampire blood was potent, a miracle healer. Even then it would probably take more than the two vampires present to turn her. She would then be bound to the entire clan as their communal fledgling. The elders would not approve of it just to save one human.

Her eyes worked their way up Nico’s eternally healthy body. She could be like that, could live like he did. With the Reaper breathing down her neck, Brenda knew what she had to do.

“Turn me.”

 

Part 2 of “Be Ours Forever” can be read Here.

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